Telescopic curtain rod



Jan. 15, 1929.

J. H. BOYE TELESCOPIC CURTAIN ROD Filed Dec. 18, 1924 Patented Jan." 15, 1929.

UNITEU STATES 1,699,276 PATENT OFFICE.

.umts II. Born, or ozeIIcAeo, ILLINOIS, assitance To JAMES II; :Born MANUFACIUR- ING coMrAnY, or cHIcAeo, ILLINOIS, n conroaa'rron or ILLINOIS.

TELESCOPIC CURTAIN ROD.

Application led December 18, 1924. Serial No; 756,692.

This invention relatos 'to the art ot curtain fixtures, and more particularly to telescopic curtain rods. In the manufacture ot such rods it is quite common to provide devices t of various sorts to yieldably loch` the telescoping members or sections of the rods in interengaged position, and prevent their accidental separation; and one object of my present invention is to provide a `very simple,

l1 inexpensive, and highly efficient device for this purpose. Another object to provide an improved locking device which shall be formed wholly in or upon the rods or rod sections themselves, without requiring the use oit additions or attachments to produce the interlocking eil'ect, and a further object of the invention is to provide an improved interlocking means capable ofi being brought into and out of engagement without marring the surface finish of the rods.

My invention, its operative principle and advantages will be readily understood by persons skilled in the art from the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein--n Fig. l is a front elevation showing a pair ot telescoping rod sections equipped with my improved locking device;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section on the line 30 9-2 of Fig. 1;

Figs. 3 and 4l are enlarged cross-sections taken on the lines 3--3 and fel-4, respectively, of Fig. l; and

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section, broken out between its ends, showing a modification.

Referring to the drawing, and (5 designate a pair oi" curtain rod sections oi' the well-known flat type. These may repre sent the members of a two-part telescopic rod, or an end section and an intermediate coupling section of a thrcepart telescopic rod, or the two intermediate sections oi' a, tour-part telescopic rod; the particular style and malte-up of the rod being immaterial so tar as the present invention is coneerned. In the example shown, the rod sections and 6 are of uniform transverse section except that the portion 5 of the rod section that enters the rod `section 6 is narrowed sufficiently to slidably interiit with the latter so that, when the parts are assembled, the the complete structure represented by the two sections is oi uniform crosssectional dimension substantially throughout its entire length.

ti U

Referring to the yieldable interlocking means, in the front wallof the outer section f3 slightly inwardly of the end of the latter 1s formed a round concave seat 7 created by oiiisetting the metal `by a round nose punch from the inner side of the wall. A protuberance 8 is similarly formed onthe front wall of the interiitting portion 5 of the rodsection 5 a slight distance from the inner end or base of the reduced portion 5'.,

A slight distance .inwardly` from the outer ond ot' the interfitting portion 5 or the section 5 asimilar round concave seat 9 is tormed in the front wall; and co-operatino` therewith :is a similarly formed rearward protuberance l on the front wallof the rod ,section 6. y

In assembling the sections and 6 the reduced portion 5 of the section 5 isslidingly entered intothe outersection 6 and moved lengthwise of the latter untibthe end of the outer wall of section 6 encounters and rides over the protuberance 8 and, at the same time, the end of theouter wall of the reduced portion 5 encounters and rides over the protuberance 10. The transverse elasticity of the front walls of the two sections, together with the transverse elasticity oi' the rear flanges o'l the rods, enables the end portions of the two rods to ride over the protuberances S and l() as described until the protuberance 8 comes into register with and snaps into the seat 7, and simultaneously the protuberancc l() comes into register with and snaps into the seat 9, whereupon the two lsections' are locked againstseparation under any ordinary or service influences tending to separate them, but manifestly may be separated by a pull equal to the thrust under which they are interlocked.

@ne advantage of the described construction lies in the fact that these locking deylces can be very easily and quickly formed 1n the rod sections by a hammer-blow transmitted through a round nose punch, and no attachments or accessories to effect the yield able interlocking of the sections are required. lllanifestly, the two co-operating interlocking devices may be variously spaced on the interlitting rod sections but preferably will be located near the ends of the latter. Another important advantage lies in the fact that, in the act of sliding the two partson each other the protuberance forming the seat 7, since projects forwardly, does not scrape over and mar the surface of the innermember 5', nor does the protuberance Aforming the seat 9, being rearwardly directed, scrape over and mar the rear surface of the outer section G. The protuberance S slides with friction on the rear surface oi' the outer section (3 only for the short distance between the end of the section 6 and its seat formed by the protuberance 7; and similarly the protuberance 10 slides with friction on the outer face of the inner member 5 only tor the short distance between the end of the latter and its seat formed by the n'otuber ance 9. It is manifest that if the co-ope 'ating locking devices and 8 and the co-operating lockingdeyices 9 and 10 both projected toward thc front or rear, either the rear surface of the rod section (5 or the front surface of the section 5 would necessarily be scratched and marred for the entire distance through which the parts are telescoped.

instead of forming` concave seats such as and 9 for yieldable .interlocking engagement with the protuberances 8 and 10, holes such as are shown at ll and l2 in Fig. 5 may be punched or otherwise formed in the front faces of the rod sections G and 5 to seat the protuberances 8 and l0 to the same mechanical effect.

While I have herein shown the inner telescoping:r member 5 as formed by a reduced portion of a rod section 5 of uniform crosssection with the rod section 6, it is manifest that the described ,interlocking feature is equally applicable to two rods or rod scc tions each of uniform diameter throughout, and one capable of telescopinc,r within the other.

l claiml. A hollow flat curtain rod section formed on the outer side of its 'front wall with a seat and a protuberancc at longitudinally7 spaced points thereon, in combination with a co-ojnerating lat telescoping rod section formed at similarly spaced points on the inner side of its front wall with a prot-uber ance and a seat adapted to yieldably interlock with the seat and protuberance respectively of said first-named section.

2. A hollow flat curtain rod section formed on the outer side of its front wall with a round concave seat and a round convex protuberance at longitudinally spaced points thereon and midway between its longitudinal edges, in combination with a coeopenatin'sg,r flat tclescoping rod section formed at similarly spaced points on the inner side of its front wall and midway between its longitudinal edges with a round convex protuberance and a round concave seat adapted to yieldably interlock with the seat and protuberance respectively of said first-named section.

Y JAMES H. BOYE. 

